Many Colours of India. Many Colours of Us! [Review]

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Book Title: Many Colours of Us

Author: Lavanya Kapahi

Illustrator: Mansi Dwivedi

Publisher: Tulika Books

Type: Paperback

Recommended Age: 3-6 years

​When I look back at memories from my childhood, ​the ones that stand out are from vacations and funnily after all these years, I remember the colours – seeing the flame of the forest trees from the train window, the bright green of the paddy fields, the red carrots that we would get only in winters and only in north India. The biggest drawback of the pandemic for my 5 year old has been that he has not traveled within India at all, except to Chandigarh and Lucknow – his grandparents’ houses. Lavanya Kapahi’s book “Many colours of us” lets you travel across India from the comfort of your home, and make colorful memories along the way!

There are some books that are just perfect, ticking all the boxes, and this is one such gem. It is a book that not only warms your heart and brings a huge smile on your face, but also fills your heart with pride at belonging to such a diverse country with such a variety of flora, fauna, cuisine and a rich cultural heritage. It is a book that serves to both increase the knowledge of the child as well as helps them embrace diversity.  

The book introduces us to some of the states and cities in India along with what they are famous for, but what is unique is the way the author does this. She picks a colour and then in perfect rhyme goes on to list 3-4 things from different places of that colour. 

I had not introduced states or Indian cities to my 5 yr old, and I’m glad that this is his first introduction to them, as there cannot be a better way to get excited about places – Orange like the Nagpur Mandarins, Brown like the Coffee Beans of Coorg. We were most excited to find that the book also had a reference to Neil’s grandparents’ city – Chandigarh! Grey like the Hornbills of Chandigarh’s Sukhna Lake!

When we read the book, I took out a map of India and as we read each sentence, I pointed out where it was on the map. From Mizoram to Kashmir and from Spiti to Andamans, we travelled the length and breadth of India, experiencing the beauty of our country through the wonderful illustrations, all while sitting right at home! If you are looking for a book to introduce the many different shades of India to your child, to tell them how beautiful our country is and how diverse, this is the perfect book to read. 

Girija reviewed Many Colours of Us as well:

‘Many Colours of us!’ is mighty impressive. The author, Lavanya Kapahi has picked such a distinctive way to introduce kids to colours as well as our country.

Little nestling is wondering what colour she should be. The older birds take turns to flaunt their colours and ask her if she wants to be like them.

Every page introduces you to diverse flora, fauna and cuisine from various cities and states of India; dishing out impressive facts about our motherland in rhyming verses.

Red like Mizoram’s flower Senhri; Brown like coffee beans of Coorg; Green like the imperial pigeons of Tripura; Purple like the fiery Naga Chilli!

The book ends with a heart warming message of unity in diversity as the nestling is unable to choose one colour and finds that all the colours look magical when they come together.

While kiddos have a lot of new things to look out for, it’s an interesting read for adults as well.

M (my 2 years, 9 months old daughter) has started randomly bringing in the book in our conversations and talks about Himalayas, the Bhadra panthers, or the very hot Naga Chilli! I am sure we are going to come back to this book again and again over the next few years as M absorbs the different layers it offers.

Do grab this gem and be wonderstruck with the richness of our country!

If you enjoyed this review and would like to introduce the many colours of India to your childoo, you can grab this book from Amazon (kbc affiliate link),

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